Indexed book



(No Model.)

F. ROSEWATER.

INDEXED BOOK.

No. 371,791. Patented 001;. 1s, 1 887.

INVENTOR W MRQ WITNESSES ATTORNEYS.

UNITE STATES aTnNT rrrcni FRANK ROSEWATER, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO,

INDEXED BOOK.

PECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 371,791, dated October18, 1887.

Application filed September 17, 1886. Serial No. 28,838. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK ROSEWATER, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio,have invented certain useful Improvements in Indexed Books, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to books which are indexed to promote readyreference to such pages as may be sought; and it consists in a bookhaving arranged at its opening edge a series of tags arrangedlongitudinally with the book or up and down the opening edge in obliquerows, each of which rows repre' sents a section of pages-say in hundredsor other groups, which 1 term generic subdivisionsand the inner edge ofthe cover of which book has along itslength aseries ofsubdivisions ofthe leaves between the greater subdivisions, progressing from the top tothe bottom, and indicating by their position, read transversely acrossthe leaves, the fractional part of the space between said rows of tags,as will be more fully described in connection with the drawings.

Figure l is aperspective view,partly broken away, of a book embodying myinvention. Fig. 2 is a perspective View of a portion of a book, showinga modification.

In the drawings, A B 6 represent three serics or rows of tags,which arearranged lengthwise of the book at its opening edgcs,the rows beingarranged obliquely to the plane of the book and parallel to each other,and the tags of each row being attached firmly to the edges of theleaves of the book, so as to form a good hold for the fingers in openingthe book.

Each row of tags represents a different sec tion of pages. Thus the rowA will represent pages of one hundred and less than two hundred, and thetags of which bear, preferably, The row B represents pages of twohundred and less than three hundred, and the tags bear the figure 2, andso on. Now, to fix any number of pages between these divisions inhundreds, I arrange upon the inside edge of the rear back of the book aprogressive row of markings in figures, as at F, which readprogressively from O at the top to such number at the bottom asrepresents the number of pages between any two rows of tags.

It will be perceived that the series of numbers on the index columnFproceeds by twos. This is because it is not possible to open the book atany place without disclosing two pages at once, and this enables me toreduce the number of figures in the index-column F to one-half thenumber of pages between the rows of tags. N ow, as these figures of thecolumn F proceed toward the bottom, any figure read transversely to therow of tags will indicate the place where such figure or figures occurbetween the rows of tags. In other words,the particular row of tags willindicate the hundreds, and the place in that row opposite the figure orfigures of column F will give the other figure of the page sought. Thusto find page 240, the row B, representing 200, is selected, and the tagof that row opposite 40 in index-column F is seized, and the book whenopened at that point discloses pages 240 and 24.1. To facilitate thistransverse reading of the figures of column over the edges of the leavesto the tags transverse lines or colored bands lead from these figuresacross the edges of the book-leavesp In making use of my invention Imay, as a modification, substitute letters for the figures, therebymaking an alphabetical index instead of a numerical one. Thus the rowsof tags A B O and so on may indicate persons of such initials, and thecolumn F may be divided into as many columns as there are rows of tags,as shown in Fig. 2, in which each row :as it progresses down the pagehas the same initialletter as the tags, but different succeeding lettersfor the transverse readings. Thus the name Acton would be found in firstrow of tags 1 andsecondline; Brown, second row of tags and third line,and so on.

In defining my invention with greater clearness I would state that I amaware that it has been proposed to subdivide the opening edge of a bookboth longitudinally and transversely in a manner somewhat similar tomine, as shown, for instance, in English Patent No. 1,801 of 1877; butthis was done by printing or marking the edges of the leaves of thebook, which soon becomes so effaced or obliterated by use as to beineffective.

My invention is distinguished by the fact that I use a mechanicaldevicethe tag--which is not affected by handling,and place theindex incolumn F, where it is not thumbed or soiled, but still has by itscross-readings full value in locating the tag until the tag itselfsufi'ers no depreciation and instantly and aceurately turns to the pagesought.

In rendering my invention still more distinct, I would state that thetags used by me are much shorter than those ordinarily employed, andbarely extend beyond the edges of the leaves to give a dividing-pointfor the leaves, their function being in the main not that of a letteredor numbered tag, (for all the tags of each row have the same genericnun1- bering in hundreds or other groupings) but merely serve asmechanical means for dividing the leaves at the right place in openingthe book, the specific number sought being read transversely from thecolumn F.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 15-- An indexed book having attached upon the openingedges of its leaves tags arranged in oblique series or rows lengthwiseor up and down the book, which series or rows represent genericdivisions of paging, and having also upon the inside edge of the coverof the book a series of subdivisions or markings representing thespecifie pagings of each of said generic divisions and placed oppositethe tags which they represent, substantially'as shown and described.

The above specification of my invention signed by me this 8th dayof'September, 1886.

FRANK ROSE'WATEB.

Wit nesses:

EDWD. W. BYRN, SoLoN 0. KnMoN,

